Kings Regulations & Admiralty Instructions - 1913 - Chaplain, Divine Service, &c.

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Kings Regulations & Admiralty Instructions - 1913

Chapter XIX - Discipline

Section I

Chaplain, Divine Service, &c.

707. Sunday Work. The ship's company is not to be employed on Sundays in any work or duty other than that which may be strictly necessary for the public service.

708. Respect to Chaplain.-The Captain is to take care that the Chaplain is treated at all times by the officers and men with the respect due to his sacred office, and that he is not required to perform any executive duties in connection therewith, so that nothing may interfere with his being regarded as a friend and adviser by all on board.

709. The Captain is to take care :-

(a) Divine Service.-That Divine Service is performed every Sunday according to the Liturgy of the Church of England, and a sermon preached, unless otherwise directed by the Senior Officer present, and if the duties of the ship and the state of the weather do not absolutely prevent it. The Captain and all officers and men not on duty are expected to attend this service, unless permission to be absent has been formally obtained on the ground of religious scruples ;

(b) Morning Prayers.-That on every week-day after morning quarters or divisions short prayers from the same Liturgy are read ;

(c) When Chaplain absent.-That when no Chaplain is on board, the best arrangements practicable are made to give effect to these instructions as to Divine Service and Morning Prayers.

710. Ships without Chaplains.-When two or more ships are together, the Senior Officer is to make arrangements for the attendance at Divine Service on Sundays of officers and men of the Church of England belonging to ships or transports present which are without Chaplains ; for this purpose the whole of the Chaplains present will be at his disposal ; he will arrange the hours and the ships in which Divine Service shall be performed in such a manner as to bring the men together in large congregations on board a few ships, rather than that more numerous separate services should be held at less convenient hours.

711. Roman Catholics, Presbyterians, Wesleyans, and others who entertain religious scruples in regard to attending the services of the Church of England, are to have full liberty to absent themselves from these services. When no .opportunity offers for them to attend their own places of worship they are to be allowed to remain in their mess places or in such part of the ship as may

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be appointed by the Captain, who will take care that the place appointed is so situated as not to give the appearance of their being obliged to form part of the congregation.

712. Landing for Divine Service.-The Senior Officer will take care that whenever the opportunity occurs and the weather permits, every facility is given to officers and men who are not members of the Church of England, and who can be spared from their duties on board, to attend Divine Service on Sundays at their respective places of worship on shore.

2. Whenever he ascertains or is informed by a minister of any denomination other than the Church of England what is the place and hour of Divine Service, or whenever he may learn that a particular minister has been appointed to attend the men of his denomination, he is to make it generally known.

3. He will take steps to ensure proper order and decorum being observed by each party attending such services, that officers and petty officers sent in charge of boats and of each ship's party are, when practicable, of the same denomination as the party, and that all men return to their ships unless they have leave to remain ashore. Returns of the numbers so sent are to be forwarded to the Commander-in-Chief on form S. 157.

4. List of members of various Denominations.-A nominal list of Roman Catholics, Presbyterians, Wesleyans, and other denominations is to be kept on board every ship, and will be open at any time to the inspection of the respective ministers when they come on board.

713. Visiting the Sick.-The Senior Officer will also arrange for the attendance of Chaplains upon the sick and others requiring spiritual assistance in ships without Chaplains, as well as in hospitals, sick quarters, and prisons, where the ministrations of clergymen are not provided for, and he will endeavour to afford the same benefits to men of other denominations.

714. Duties of Ministers.-The following duties in regard to the men of their denomination will be expected from those ministers who are in receipt of a fixed salary :-

  1. To conduct Divine Service at the appointed time and place.
  2. To give religious instruction to the boys in the training ships, and to the children in the marine schools.
  3. To visit the sick.
  4. To officiate at Funerals.
  5. To visit at convenient times, as he may think desirable, those of his people who are in ships in harbour, naval barracks, or married quarters, and, at the discretion of the Commanding Officer, those in cells and prison.

2. Every facility is to be given to an officiating minister to visit sick members of his flock in hospitals and in the sick berth on board ships.

In the event of any such sick person being dangerously ill or of his having received injuries from which he may not recover, the Medical Officer is to inform the Commanding Officer, who will cause the minister of the denomination to which the man may belong to be informed without delay, and will give him every possible facility to visit the patient.

So far as the discipline and convenience of the Service will allow, officiating ministers are also to be afforded facilities for visiting their people in ship and barracks, and for instructing the young.

715. General Instructions.-Commanders-in-Chief, officers in command of stations, and Captains will, so far as practicable, make arrangements for carrying out the foregoing Regulations at the several ports used by His Majesty's

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ships ; when no such arrangements have been made, or, if made, when they are inapplicable to the actual circumstances, the Senior Officer present is to make fitting and timely arrangements so that the largest possible number from each ship may have the benefit of Divine Service conducted by ordained or authorised ministers.

716. Naval Marriages Act - General Instructions.-The passing of the Naval Marriages Act, 1908, has thrown upon naval chaplains and officers commanding His Majesty's ships the duty of publishing the banns of marriage of officers, seamen, and marines borne on the books of His Majesty's ships at sea, and has also thrown on Commanding Officers certain of the duties of registrars of marriages with regard to the receiving of notices of marriages which are intended to be contracted without the publication of banns and the duty of giving certificates to enable such marriages to take place.

These duties must be performed strictly in accordance with the law as contained in various statutes, including the Naval Marriages Act, 1908.

The instructions in Articles 716 to 719 are intended to guide them in the performance of these duties.

2. The duties to be performed are, in nearly all cases, of a quite simple character : consisting merely of the publication of banns, or of notices of marriage, and the giving of certificates. Forms S. 570 to 574 inclusive are to be used in this connection.

3. In this and the following Articles attention has been drawn to some of the complicated provisions of the statute law in order that Commanding Officers may know how to act in the possible event of objections being made to intended marriages - events which are not at all likely to occur in practice.

4. Wales is for the purpose of marriage law part of England, and the forms for England are to be used when the marriage is intended to be solemnised or contracted in Wales.

5. Shore Establishments and Harbour Ships.-The procedure under the Naval Marriages Act is not to be used in the case of men serving in shore establishments or in ships permanently stationed in harbour.

6. Alternative Procedure, England and Wales.-A marriage after publication of banns, when it is to be solemnised in England or Wales, may only take place according to the rites of the Established Church. When the marriage is to be contracted by certificate of a superintendent registrar the publication of banns may not be resorted to, and the procedure by way of notice of marriage must be adopted. (See 718.)

7. Scotland.-When the marriage is to be solemnised in Scotland, it is immaterial whether the contracting party on board ship resorts to publication of banns or to notice of marriage. It is likewise immaterial in Scotland whether the woman resorts to proclamation of banns in the parish church or obtains publication of notice of marriage, pursuant to the Marriage Notice (Scotland) Act, 1878, either method being equally available, irrespective of that adopted on board ship by the other contracting party to the intended marriage.

Such marriage may be solemnised, or celebrated, by ministers and priests of all churches and of all denominations without exception, or by any other persons entitled to celebrate marriages in Scotland, but a minister of the Church of Scotland is not obliged to perform the ceremony unless both parties have proceeded by publication of banns.

8. Ireland.-A marriage after publication of banns, when it is to be solemnised in Ireland, may only take place according to the rites of the Church of Ireland and between parties both of whom are Protestant Episcopalians,

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or when the marriage is to be solemnised in a certified Presbyterian place of public worship and between parties both of whom are Presbyterians.

When the marriage is intended to be contracted or solemnised in Ireland by the licence or certificate of a district registrar of marriages, the publication of banns may not be resorted to and the procedure by way of notice of marriage must be adopted.

717. Request for publication of Banns.-The officer, seaman, or marine, who desires to have his banns published should be required to fill up and sign the form of request for publication of banns (S. 571). It should be pointed out to the person requesting publication that it will be necessary for the banns to be published also in the church of the parish where the woman resides, whether in England, Wales or Scotland, or else, in Scotland, that she should duly publish a notice of marriage pursuant to the Marriage Notice (Scotland) Act, 1878. In Ireland it is necessary that banns should also be published in the church of the parish where the woman resides and where the marriage is to be solemnised, or in the certified Presbyterian place of public worship frequented by the congregation of which the woman is a member and where the marriage is to be solemnised, and the applicant should be asked whether the woman understands and agrees that the marriage is to be after publication of banns and to be solemnised in the church of the parish where she reside, or in such Presbyterian place of worship as aforesaid, as the case may be.

2. The Chaplain (or, if there is no Chaplain, the officer commanding the ship) must then proceed as follows

  1. Banns of Marriage Book.-He must enter particulars of the banns in the banns of marriage book (form S. 572).
  2. Publication of Banns.-He must publish the banns from the banns book on three successive Sundays at morning service on board ship, This should be done immediately after the second lesson in accordance with the Rubric prefixed to the Office of Matrimony in the Book of Common Prayer.
  3. Entry of Dates.-After the third publication of the banns he must fill in the banns of marriage book the dates when the banns were published, and must sign the entry in the book.
  4. Certificate of Publication.-He must then (unless the banns have been forbidden) fill in a form of certificate of publication of banns which will be found printed in the banns of marriage book, and perforated so that it can be torn out, and must hand the certificate to the party at whose request the banns were published.
  5. When Banns forbidden.-If the banns have been forbidden on any of the grounds on which banns may be forbidden, no certificate should be given. The grounds upon which banns may be lawfully forbidden appear to include the following:
  1. That either of the parties to the intended marriage has a husband or wife living at the time.
  2. That the parties to the intended marriage are related within the prohibited degrees of consanguinity or affinity;
  3. That the man is under 14 years or the woman under 12 years of age ;
  4. That either of the parties is an idiot or a lunatic ;
  5. If either of the parties is under 21 years of age the banns may be forbidden by the parent or guardian of either of them.

718. Notices of Marriage.-The officer, seaman, or marine who desires to give notice of marriage must do so on one of the forms S: 570-570b-:

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  1. Form to be used.-Form S. 570 is to be used when the marriage is to be contracted in England or Wales, form S. 570a when it is to be contracted in Scotland, and form S. 570b when it is to be contracted in Ireland.
  2. On receiving Notice.-The officer should satisfy himself that the party giving the notice has read and understands the declarations which are annexed to the notice, and should see that the particulars required by the form used are given. He should strike out such parts of the form as are inapplicable (as directed by the marginal notes of the form).
  3. Divorced Persons.-If the man or the woman has been previously married and the marriage has been dissolved by the Divorce Court, the condition of the party should be described as follows :
  1. In the case of the man, he should be described in column 2 as " the divorced husband of , formerly spinster" (or " widow." as the case may be) ;
  2. In the case of the woman, she should be described in column 1 thus: " Ann Jones, formerly Brown, spinster " (or " widow "), and in column 2 as " the divorced wife of ."
  1. Consents required.-It will not be necessary for the officer to satisfy himself that in cases where the consent to the. marriage is required by law such consent has been given, but he should see that the person giving notice makes the proper declaration. The persons whose consents to marriage in England or Ireland are required in the case of a person under 21 years of age, not being a widower or a widow, are the following:
  1. The father if living ;
  2. If the father be dead, the guardian or guardians lawfully appointed or one of them ;
  3. If there is no guardian or guardians, the mother if unmarried ;
  4. If there is no mother unmarried, the guardian or guardians of the person appointed by the High Court, if any, or one of them ;
  5. If there is no such person authorised to give such consent, no consent is required, and in that case the declarant will declare as in the form that there is no person whose consent is by law required.
  1. Signing Notice.-The form must be signed by the party giving notice in the presence of the officer, who must also sign it as witness.
  2. Information to Person giving Notice.-The officer should point out to the person giving notice that it will be necessary for the woman to give notice to the Superintendent Registrar (in England or Wales), or the Registrar (in Scotland), or District Registrar (in Ireland) of the district where she dwells ; or at the option of the woman, if the marriage is to take place in Scotland, to have the banns proclaimed in the church of the parish where she resides.

2. Entry in Marriage Notice Book.-The Commanding Officer must then enter a copy of the notice in the marriage notice book (form S. 574), by filling in the appropriate form according as the marriage is intended to be contracted in England, Scotland, or Ireland.

3. Marriage Notice Book.-The marriage notice book is to be open at all reasonable times, without fee, to all persons desirous of inspecting the same,

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The book should be kept by the Commanding Officer, and application should be made to him by any person desirous of inspecting it.

4. Filing Notice.-The Commanding Officer must file the original notice and keeps the same with his official papers, and it will be returned to the Admiralty with them in due course.

5. Form of Public Notice.-The Commanding Officer must, on the same day on which he enters the notice, affix a public notice of the marriage in some conspicuous place in the ship :

  1. If the marriage is intended to be celebrated in England or Ireland, the public notice should be an exact copy of the original notice (for which purpose one of the printed forms S. 570-570b, may be used) ;
  2. If the marriage is to be in Scotland, public notice must be given on, form S. 570c.

6. Irish Marriage.-If the marriage is to take place in Ireland, the Commanding Officer must also, as soon as practicable after receiving the notice, do as follows:

  1. If the marriage is to take place in a church, chapel, or place of worship (and the parties are not Quakers or Jews), he must send, in a registered letter, a copy of the notice authenticated by his signature (for which purpose form S. 570b may be used) to the minister of the church, chapel, or place of public worship stated in the notice as that in which the marriage is intended to be solemnised, and a similar notice to the minister of the church or place of public worship which the woman usually attends;
  2. If the marriage is to be according to Jewish rites or in a meeting-house of the Society of Friends, he must send a copy of the notice by registered post to the registry office of the Society of Friends or Secretary of a Synagogue by whom the marriage is to be registered ;
  3. If the marriage is intended to be contracted in the office of the Registrar, and there is not any minister of the church, chapel, or place of worship which the woman usually attends, and the parties are not Jews or Quakers, the Commanding Officer must, at the expense of the party who gave the notice, cause a copy of the notice to be published once at least in two consecutive weeks, as soon as practicable after he has received the notice, in some newspaper circulating in the district in which the marriage is intended, or, if there is not any newspaper circulating in such district, in some newspaper circulating in the county in which the district is situate.

7. Period for which exhibited.-The public notice must remain affixed for 21 days in the case of a marriage intended to take place in England or Ireland, and for seven days in the case of a marriage intended to take place in Scotland.

8. Objections.-At any time before the issue of a certificate the issue of the certificate may be " forbidden " or " objected to " :

  1. English and Irish Marriages.-In the case of an English or Irish marriage any authorised person may forbid the issue of a certificate by writing the word " Forbidden " opposite the entry of notice of marriage in the marriage notice book, and signing his or her name and place of abode, and his or her character in respect of either of the parties by reason of which he or she is so authorised.
  2. Scotch Marriage.-In the case of a marriage which is intended to take place in Scotland, objections can only be made in writing signed by the person taking the objection. The person taking the objection must appear personally to lodge it with the officer, and must in his presence make and subscribe a declaration in the following form,

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which the officer must endorse on the written statement of objections :

" I hereby solemnly declare that the facts as stated by me

in the written statement of objections to the marriage intended

between and

on which this declaration is endorsed are true to the best of my knowledge and belief, and I make this declaration knowing that if the declaration is false I expose myself to the penalties of perjury.

" (Signed) OBJECTOR."

" I certify that this declaration was made before me and subscribed in my

presence this day of, in my

office.

" Commanding Officer of H.M.S. ` . "

9. Objections-How dealt with.-The officer must deal with the objections in the following way:

  1. If the objections do not set forth a legal impediment to marriage, but relate to some formality or statutory requirement merely, the officer may direct the notice to be amended and a certificate granted thereon without republication of the notice if he shall see fit, or to be cancelled if he shall see fit, in which case a fresh notice of marriage may be given.
  2. If the objection is that the persons intending to contract marriage are within the forbidden degrees of consanguinity or affinity, or are both or either of them already married, or are both or either of them not of marriageable age, or are from any other legal incapacity disqualified to give such consent as is necessary for marriage, and generally where the objection sets forth any legal impediment to a marriage, the officer must suspend the issuing of his certificate until there is produced to him a certified copy of a judgment of a competent court of law to the effect that the parties are not in respect of the said objection disqualified from contracting marriage.

10. Issue of Certificate.-If the issue of the certificate has not been forbidden or objected to, the Commanding Officer must after the expiration of the period of 21 days (English or Irish marriage), or seven days (Scotch marriage), issue a certificate in one of the forms prescribed by the Admiralty (forms Nos. S. 573573b), using the appropriate one according as the marriage is to be in England, Scotland, or Ireland. He will fill up and sign this certificate and hand it to the person who gave the notice of marriage.

719. Penalties.-The various enactments and the Order in Council impose penalties for offences under the Acts. It is not necessary to call attention to these in detail. It is sufficient to point out that the Commanding Officer must be careful to carry out his duties punctiliously, and he should warn officers, seamen, and marines giving notice of marriage that they are liable to the penalties of perjury if they wilfully make any false declarations or sign any false notice of marriage.

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